Man To Have Brain Tumor Removed Through His Nose

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – A Kentucky man is scheduled to undergo a unique procedure that only a few surgeons in the country have the ability to perform. 69-year-old Garry McCandless, Sr., is having a brain tumor removed through his nose.

Doctors at IU Health Methodist Hospital will be performing the surgery Thursday morning. The procedure is called “endoscopic transnasal tumor resection,” and doctors say the recovery time is about ten times faster than normal brain tumor surgery.

“The way that the procedure was explained to me, it makes perfect since what they are doing and I like it a whole lot better than cutting a hole in the top of your head,” McCandless told a local reporter.

Last April, when he discovered the tumor, it was about half an inch in diameter. It has since gotten larger and started to affect his memory and eyesight.

“We decided let’s go get it done. I’ve got a long life to live,” he said.

The surgery is scheduled to take about four hours and McCandless anticipates that he should be back to his old self in about four to six weeks.